The Best Medicine
by bc713
Summary: Doctor Burke was hardly one to take students, until one day an old colleague dropped an ambitious, young Hunter into his life. Oh the horror. Leoriocentric. OC warning.
1. Chapter 1

Simply because there are just not enough Leorio stories. This plot bunny came to me while I was doodling one of my characters.

OC:They belong to me. Leorio and the others do not.

* * *

The sunlight burned down on the large campus of the prestigeous medical school he had gotten into. Just a flash of his Hunter's license and he had gotten in, full scholarship. It just so happened that this particular university was founded by a reknown Hunter, and supported by many of the man's other research facilities.

In spite of which, there were no commemorative portraits or statues of the Hunter anywhere as was common in most colleges. It seemed that the only trace of the man was his name.

Quinn Burke

A three star Hunter. Founder of two universities and fifty research facilities world wide. The Medical Genius.

Leorio pushed aside his thoughts on the faceless man to turn to his current issue. Having been put on an accelerated program( that license sure was something), his next semester at the school would be his last. Not too bad.

The problem was finding someone who would finance the goal of a newbie Hunter with a lucrative goal.

His professor in whom he had confided, had asked him to wait for about a month before seeing him again. Apparently he knew someone who just might be able to help him.

_I'm sure you realize just how unlikely it will be for you to get a sponsor worth his salt, Leorio. You've only just become a true Hunter and only know the basics of nen. _

_The dream you have of making free clinics is noble, but hardly anyone nowadays gives to charity from the good of their hearts without expecting a huge return._

_I'll have to get back to you. I can't promise you anything, but it's worth a try, right?_

Even then the professor seemed to be convincing himself.

He ran his long fingers through his hair, recalling what Jiro, his friend and classmate had jokingly told him.

_" It's okay, Leorio. I guess you could do a few hundred odd jobs. You'll set up your first one by the time your thirty."_ Hardly comforting.

"But I might just have to." Leorio wanted to get started already. They had a point though.

Enhancer he might be, but he wasn't completely stupid. It would take a lot of cash. Not just starting the place but equipment, maintenace, salaries, stock. And he would have to maintain a steady flow of money to keep it alive, let alone branch out.

All in all, the chance of this working seemed pretty slim.

"I guess I should get started."

As he made to access the Hunter website, maybe find a job or two, his beetle shaped phone went off.

"Hello?"

The excited voice of his professor rang out of the speaker.

"Leorio, come to my office immediately! I think I have an offer that may interest you!"

And with that the excitable man hung up.

Maybe things were looking up.

A week from now he would curse the day he thought so.

* * *

Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"I have to go _where_?!"

Leorio had come to the professor's office after receiving the man's urgent call.

Apparently, he had found the perfect sponsor for his dream. According to him, the guy had everything he could ask for.

_..But there's always a catch._

"Wyrd Forest. As you can see on this map-" The salt-and-peppered doctor tapped the board with his cane."It is in a remote region located in the next continent over."

"Wyrd has a unique ecosystem, teeming with rare and very dangerous organisms. The weather changes almost constantly, and the temperatures vary by nearly 50 degrees at a time. There are no records of natives living in Wyrd. Even the most dedicated beast Hunters don't like to go there. Inhospitable would be an understatement."

Leorio picked his jaw up off the floor.

"And he _lives _there? It's in the middle of nowhere!" _Is he one of those wealthy eccentrics?_

The professor blinked at him before chortling merrily.

"_Lives_ there? Most certainly not! Only a fool would actually reside in such a place." he said shaking his head." As..._odd_ as he may be, I don't think Dr. Burke would fancy such a place."

The young Hunter started at the name.

"Wait, wait, wait! _Burke_? You don't mean-"

"Yes! Quinn of this school, and several other titles that I don't have the patience to utter at the moment." He said with a small smile at his student's shock.

"You can't be serious! He's one of the top Hunters out there, and you're saying that he'll sponsor _me_?!"

At that, the professor's smile faltered.

"Erm...about that, Leorio. He hasn't actually agreed yet."

Leorio frowned in confusement. "What do you mean? I thought you said.."

"Think of it this way: You are a Hunter going to an interview. You need to _find_ him and convince him to invest in your talent."

"I..see." Leorio muttered with a thoughtful nod.

"You're a Hunter aren't you? It shouldn't be too hard. The thing is, once he catches on, he'll do his best to convince you otherwise." A dry grin stretched his lips." Let me warn you, he's not the most accomodating person. Burke is extremely _selective_ of his colleagues."

He turned to look out the window at the Headmaster's office across the yard with an almost nostagic look.

"The Headmaster and every single professor in this university including myself were hand-picked. The same goes for the supervisors of his labs. Can you imagine how hard he'll be on you?" The man shot him a firm look.

"He is the best choice for your predicament. You told me that you would do anything to achieve your goal; I've simply offered you an opportunity."

"You can take it...or, you can go back to the Hunter's Website and fish for small fry."

They stared at each other in silence.

"Well?"

He just grinned.

"You have to ask?"

/

As the professor watched his young pupil stride back towards the dorms, a determined gait in place of his relaxed sidle, he felt a tiny, minscule twinge of guilt in his gut.

Perhaps he hadn't been entirely honest with the poor boy.

_I'd never thought it would come to this._

Simply put, there was absolutely _no way_ that Burke would agree to sponsor the youth. At least not the way he was now.

As far as he knew, Leorio hadn't even customized his nen style. The doctor would throw a hissy fit when he realized what he _really_ wanted him to do with the boy.

Leorio probably would too.

But, if anyone could get under the elusive Hunter's skin, it would be Leorio.

The man returned to his desk to sort through the research essays cluttering the surface. His gaze drifted over to a worn picture frame at the edge of his desk, coated in a thin layer of dust.

Afterall, hadn't Quinn Burke been an ambitious and terribly naive little Hunter once upon a time ago?

The young boy, frozen in time, simply grinned back at him through thick, foggy lenses.

* * *

Things are finally starting to move forward.

Question:Is Leorio an enhancer or emitter?


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

Looking back, it had been sheer dumb luck that he'd found the doctor at all.

* * *

"Where the HELL is he?!"

Leorio slumped against the roots of an ancient tree, the vines of a strangler fig dug into his back.

To recap, Leorio, aspiring doctor and Hunter, was tramping through Wyrd Forest searching for the elusive Dr. Burke, who was supposedly here researching the exotic and extremely poisonous curare plant.

It had been about a week or so since he had set out to find the man. Actually getting to Wyrd Forest hadn't been very hard, just a flash of the ol' Hunter liscense and a deluxe first-class seat in one of the fastest planes in the world was his. Although, the flabergasted looks he had gotten when giving his destination were a tad unsettling.

Getting there hadn't been a problem. Just surviving in the forest for four days had strained everything in him.

His professor had been terribly accurate in his description of the infamous forest.

The first day had been searing and humid. It had been like inhaling water. As night had fallen, freezing rain and sleet had soaked his clothes and supplies.

The second day hurricane force winds had ripped through the canopy. Nuts, gourds, heavy branches, and venomous snakes and frogs had rained down on him through the night, crushing his tent and creating nasty bruises on his body.

Now giant, vivid flowers were blooming, wafting their heady perfume and choking, hallucination-inducing pollen into the air, attracting huge bees and other nectar-loving creatures.

That was just the weather. The animals inhabiting the forest were even worse.

Aside from snakes, frogs, and bees, there were screaming ape-like creatures that made it a habit to pelt boulders and feces at him; brackish water teeming with electic eels, rays, crocodiles, and carnivorous fish proved unsuitable for drinking; leeches, mosquitoes, and angry hordes of ants whose bites felt like gunshot wounds attacked at every other step in the bush-

And then there were the magical creatures.

He hadn't actually managed to catch a glimpse of them, but they were there; casting illusions, lunging from the shadows, and trying to lead him into quicksand and bogs. It was the Hunter Exam all over again. Just ten times worse.

_At least there's no deranged homicidal clowns around._

The only good thing about Wyrd Forest, was how quickly it forced his nen to kick in. Throughout the day Leorio kept up a thin layer of ken in two hour intervals to protect himself from heavy projectiles, and had honed his instincts enough to sense hostile animals at night.

All in four days.

"Man, this would be a great place to train if I had a safe place to rest for once." He groused. A golden, balloon-like bumble bee floated overhead, sprinkling pollen in his hair.

"Atchoo! Damnit!" _How do I even know if this guy is alive?! _

Fed up and growing delirious on the pollen and perfumes, Leorio began shouting at the trees and rocks. Maybe if he made as much noise as possible, the good(utterly-insane-to-be-living-here) doctor would hear him...or something like that.

"DOCTOR _FREAKING_ BURKE!!! WHERE IN THE SEVEN HELLS ARE YOU!?!?!"

The birds in the canopy, fifty feet up, shrieked, startled at the aggrivated Hunter's yell, knocking their nests over, eggs hurtling to earth like missiles.

Leorio frantically threw his arms over his head as the eggs hit him, plastering his pollen-covered jacket with yolk and whites.

"AW! C'MON!!!"

Unbeknownst to Leorio, his desperate ire translated itself into a pulse of nen, emitting through the forest with every bellowed syllable, sending creatures scattering in fright.

/ about two miles away.../

A dark haired woman perked up. The lanky man crouched in the bush next to her didn't even twitch.

"Quincy, did you feel that?"

The bespecled man's head popped up out of the bush, heart-shaped leaves littered his gray hair. A tiny beetle specimen was clutched delicately by a pair of forceps in his hand.

"Hn?"

She clucked her tongue impatiently.

"I said, 'did you feel that?'"

"The pulse of nen that just swept by? Why yes, I did."

"..."

"..."

The captured beetle chirped despondently.

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"What should we do?" she said with strained patience.

He raised a silver eyebrow at her, a blank, uncomprehensive expression painted across his thin face.

"Why should we do anything?"

"It seems like the source was quite upset. Maybe someone's in _trouble_."

"...and?"

"Maybe we should _help_ them?" she said as if talking to a particularly dense child.

He gave her a confounded look.

"Whatever for?" He said, sticking his head back into the bush." It's probably another Hunter poaching for pin-toed lemurs. Only an _idiot_ would come all the way out here. The stupid ones get weeded out; it's the law of nature."

The woman facefaulted.

"What does that make _you_ then?"

"Crazy." He chirped.

The beetle chirped back.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

_A single flap of a butterfly's wing causes an earthquake on the other side of the world._

* * *

Quinn Burke had never been a people person.

Books and dust mites had been his parents for as long as he could remember, and he was loath to change it.

The list of things he hated was short and precise:

Noise

Fighting

Stupid Questions

But above all..._People_.

Now this might seem very odd for a doctor who supposedly helped people, but growing up the way he did had painted a thick layer of cynicism over his youthful dreams.

Now he was a researching diagnostician that traveled the globe, finding cures, saving lives, without ever even being within a mile of the patient.

He was no Messiah Complex, out to save the world; nor was he a genocidal nutcase, out to purify humanity.

He was a doctor.

He solved puzzles.

He detested the populace as a whole, but could appreciate a few special individuals.

Never in his entire life did he think it would one day include a hot-headed hunter, out to give free healthcare.

Doesn't that phrase just sound _so_ bizarre?

Quinn thinks so.

Quinn thinks he shouldn't have had to teach him.

Quinn thinks he should have just minded his own business.

Quinn damns himself for ever opening a university and hiring that geezer.

But a few weeks later, Quinn thinks that maybe the kid's not as annoying as he thought...

Not that Quinn would ever say this aloud.

Quinn still has his pride after all.

It was all _her_ fault.

Yes. That's it.

/

"Quiiinnccccy."

"If you're that curious, go look. I'm trying to figure out how this beetle ingests this plant and nulifies the toxins of-"

"What if this person is in trouble?"

"Didn't you already ask this question?"

"Bu-"

"And didn't I already give you an answer?"

"..." pout.

"..."

"..."

"Are you _that_ _starved_ for company? Do I need to buy you a cat?" The woman huffed with her hands on her hips.

"No! I'd prefer _human_ contact. Don't _you_ ever get lonely?"

"No voice-in-my-head, I enjoy my solitude. One day you will understand the beauty in solitude. Now my little arthropod, where were we?" He cooed at the tiny beetle.

"Hmph! Fine!" She snipped and stomped off.

In the opposite direction of Leorio.

/

It was currently hailing where Leorio was.

The disgruntled hunter took refuge in the hollow of a massive tree, strangler figs drapped off of the branches.

"Maybe he died or something, and I'm on a wild goose chase." He mumbled as he watched bowling balls crack open as they hit the earth.

_No one sane would come here...but then doesn't that mean I'm insane?_

Right now his head hurt. Thinking and rationalizing seemed to make the pounding worse so he stopped. What had thinking ever done for him anyway?

Leorio gave one last howl of frustration, sending another wave of energy out though the forest.

/

Quinn had finally befriended the surly little sapsucker enough to let it sit on the pad of his index finger. He carefully positioned it with his thumb.

It had taken several long hours to find the perfect specimen under the numerous leaves of the bushes. The work had finally paid off.

He had finally gained a good sketch, measurement, and record of it's life cycle. Now all he had to do was retrieve a tiny sampling of the insect's abdominal secretion to examine for a new treatment.

The silver-haired man carefully squeezed the beetle's little pouch, just enough so that he didn't squash the delicate creature. It took a gentle hand and a good deal of concentration to harvest the beetle juice and only a slight of hand could-

WOOOOOOOOSHHHHH!!!!!!

Squelch.

-crush it...Damn.

The remains of the beetle now stained his finger yellow.

Normally this would have been a tiny irritation. But the strain of searching .leaf., coupled with the annoyance of arguing with his assistant, _again_, had left him with little fuse remaining.

It was only momentary, but he snapped.

In a blur of movement, his hand drew up all of his ire and blasted a marble-sized nen emission in the direction of the wave.

Then he immediately felt better, and went to search for another specimen.

Not realizing he had just doomed himself.

Leorio had just begun to doze off to the thuds of bowling balls, when a burst of nen came hurtling toward him.

It impacted the ground outside, causing a violent tremor to rack the tree he was resting in.

_The hell?!_

GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRR!!!!!!!!

At least he had thought it was a tree.

The ground shook even harder, and suddenly the world outside blurred as he felt the familiar effect of one going up in a really fast elevator.

Leorio frantically thrust his head out from the hole in the tree and looked down.

"Hooolllyyyyy!!!!!!"

The ground was now fifty feet below, and the tree was _moving_!

Quinn, once again burried in a bush, felt the earth tremble.

He wasn't troubled. It was just the movement of a Terasaur. It was a massive reptile that grew trees and other plantlife on it's back. Quite common in Wyrd Forest.

It seemed to be coming from the direction he had shot his nen.

_Oops_.

Quinn felt a twitter of guilt. He wasn't a tree hugger but disliked harming any wildlife. Even the squashing of the beetle had saddened him a little. After all any animal was better than another human.

But as it came closer, he could swear he heard screaming.

Human screams.

"Oh, joy." Quinn groaned.

"Company. Won't Anessa be thrilled."

Meanwhile Leorio was frantically trying to figure out a way off of the raging monster.

"Do I jump?! No way! That's got to be over fifty feet! But when is it going to stop!?"

The thing underneath him was going faster and faster. The likelyhood that it would stop and let him off was nonexistant. So he made his decision.

Leorio steeled his nerves and closed his eyes.

"Oh man, I hope this works."

Focused his nen in his legs...and jumped.

Quinn trudged towards the rumbling hoping to...to...to what exactly?

Stop the Terasaur? No. That would be impossible without killing it.

Save the human? No. Why would he do that?

Then what _was_ he doing?

That's when it hit him...literally.

A dirty, lanky young man came hurtling out of the sky and landed on him.

God had sent Dr. Burke a student. Straight out of the sky.

Now he had another thing to add to the list of hate:

God.


End file.
